Best Ramadan 2022 playlists from Anghami, Spotify, Deezer and Apple Music

Streaming services have a variety of content on offer created specifically for the holy month

Sami Yusuf's tracks are featured in the official Ramadan playlists of several streaming services. Photo: Andante Records

While broadcasters battle for the region's eyeballs during Ramadan, major audio streaming services are in competition for their eardrums, with their own array of specialised programming.

Some have gone as far creating their own Ramadan channels or pages, packed with thematic playlists.

Here, we take a look at what's on offer from the major music streaming services throughout the month.

Anghami

The company is the only platform from the region, so it's perhaps expected that it would pull out all the stops during Ramadan.

Anghami has a lot of content to savour on its Ramadan channel, which you can navigate to by clicking on the tab in the top left corner of the Explore page.

The microsite is a buffet of offerings ranging from audio series starring Arab film and television stars to abridged versions of inspirational international literature. There are also playlists of verses from the Quran and Islamic nasheeds.

Its audio series feature plenty of stars who have lent their voices to comic and dramatic plots.

Comedian Ahmed Helmy stars in Zaky Zaky, while fellow Egyptian action star Ahmed Helmy leads the cast in Hob Min Taref Thalet.

Anghami has 10 series available in total, with new 12 to 13-minute-long episodes available nightly.

As for the abridged audiobooks, Arabic translations of international titles include former US president Barack Obama's memoir A Promised Land, Gillian McKeith's nutritional guidebook You Are What You Eat and Andrew Robertson’s Genius: A Very Short Introduction.

Anghami is also keeping up to date with the best of Arabic television dramas this season, with a collection of titrats (opening theme songs) and Quran recitations by famous names such as Egypt's Abdul Basit Abdul Samad and Kuwait's Mishary Rashid Alafasy.

Other handy playlists can be found under the Mental Health First section, which has various Arabic podcasts about focusing on calmness and introspection.

Under the Iftar Preps banner, you will also find Arabic and English food podcasts on how to create healthy and communal meals.

Spotify

Spotify has also refreshed its annual Ramadan page by adding new content to its playlists and podcasts.

Some of the material is also region-specific, with Pakistani listeners having access to a South Asian Sufi playlist of original tracks.

Listeners outside the region can also access the collection through the search button.

Those in the Mena region have a lot to choose from.

Popular playlists Ramadan Spirit and Layali Ramadan are back with more soulful Islamic nasheeds by Maher Zain and Sami Yusuf, as well as instrumental oud tracks.

When it comes to podcasts, eclectic programmes are on offer.

Highlights include the Arabic short story anthology Juha and 1001 Nights from Dubai production house Finyal Media.

Fans of the long-running MBC drama Arous Beirut can tune into the official podcast of the same name, which dissects the drama of each episode.

Deezer

The platform's dedicated channel can be accessed after typing "Ramadan" in the search bar.

Deezer shares much of the same material in terms of playlists focusing on Ramadan titrats and spiritual tracks. However, where it distinguishes itself is in the well-curated official song collections.

Family Time is a heart-warming playlist of modern and classic Arabic pop tunes to suit all tastes and features hits by Amr Diab, Sherine and Cairokee.

Ramadan Focus is also a winner with its mix of evocative instrumental oud pieces by artists such as Palestine's Le Trio Joubran and Iraqi composers Naseer Shamma and Omar Bashir.

Apple Music

The streaming platform's offer is disappointingly thin offering from the streaming giant.

With no dedicated page, the search result for Ramadan reveals a hodgepodge of playlists including those dedicated to nasheed star Maher Zain.

The best playlist is Inspired by Faith, which includes a selection of faith-based songs by popular artists Hussain Al Jassmi, Mesut Kurtis, Atif Aslam and Sami Yusuf.

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